Pontiak is an American

neo-psychedelic rock Neo-psychedelia is a diverse genre of psychedelic music that draws inspiration from the sounds of 1960s psychedelia, either updating or copying the approaches from that era. Originating in the 1970s, it has occasionally seen mainstream pop su ...

band of three brothers from the

Blue Ridge Mountain Blue Ridge Mountain, also known as Blue Mountain, is the colloquial name of the westernmost ridge of the Blue Ridge Mountains in northern Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The Appalachian Trail traverses the entire length of th ...

area of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

: Jennings Carney (bass, organ, vocals—born 1978, Washington DC), Van Carney (lead vocals, guitar—born 1980, Washington DC) and Lain Carney (drums, vocals—born 1982, Washington DC). The band officially formed in January 2004.

Biography

They were part of the Baltimore music scene for four or five years and then moved back to Virginia. Van, Lain, and Jennings Carney initially connected to Baltimore's growing scene as they got their start there. They are still associated with Baltimore bands, including

Arbouretum Arbouretum is an American alternative rock band started by musician Dave Heumann in 2002. They have released ten albums, four of them on Thrill Jockey Records. Discography Albums * '' Long Live the Well-Doer'' (2004) * '' Rites of Uncovering'' ( ...

with whom they shared a split release EP Lain and Van both spent some time in college studying in London and now the band regularly tours in Europe. The band signed with Thrill Jockey in 2008. On February 6, 2012 they released their ninth album, ''Echo Ono,'' their seventh on Thrill Jockey. On January 28, 2014 they released their tenth album, ''Innocence'' (also on Thrill Jockey). ''Maker'' is Pontiak's third album, originally released in 2009. ''Living'' is Pontiak's fourth album, originally released in 2010. ''Dialectic of Ignorance'' is Pontiak's last album, released in 2017.

Genre

Their music is not easily classified. They have been compared to

Harvey Milk Harvey Bernard Milk (May 22, 1930 – November 27, 1978) was an American politician and the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Milk was born and raised in N ...

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

, and

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...

. Also,

My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket is an American rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Koster. The ba ...

Sleep Sleep is a sedentary state of mind and body. It is characterized by altered consciousness, relatively inhibited sensory activity, reduced muscle activity and reduced interactions with surroundings. It is distinguished from wakefulness by a de ...

Slint Slint was an American rock band from Louisville, Kentucky, formed in 1986. The band consisted of guitarist and vocalist Brian McMahan, guitarist David Pajo, drummer and vocalist Britt Walford, Todd Brashear (bassist on ''Spiderland''), and Etha ...

Midlake Midlake is an American folk rock band from Denton, Texas, formed in 1999. The band consists of Eric Pulido, McKenzie Smith, Scott Lee, Eric Nichelson, Jesse Chandler, and Joey McClellan. In 2012, vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter Tim ...

Crazy Horse Crazy Horse ( lkt, Tȟašúŋke Witkó, italic=no, , ; 1840 – September 5, 1877) was a Lakota war leader of the Oglala band in the 19th century. He took up arms against the United States federal government to fight against encroachment by wh ...

Mudhoney Mudhoney is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1988, following the demise of Green River. Its members are singer and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner, bassist Guy Maddison and drummer Dan Peters. Orig ...

, and others. And:

neo-psychedelic Neo-psychedelia is a diverse genre of psychedelic music that draws inspiration from the sounds of 1960s psychedelia, either updating or copying the approaches from that era. Originating in the 1970s, it has occasionally seen mainstream pop suc ...

rock, '60s psych and

acid rock Acid rock is a loosely defined type of rock music that evolved out of the mid-1960s garage punk movement and helped launch the psychedelic subculture. Named after lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), the style is generally defined by heavy, di ...

, '70s

progressive Progressive may refer to: Politics * Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform ** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context * Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...

and proto-metal, and '90s

stoner rock Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Sleep. ...

and

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

."Pontiak bio," MOG

Discography

* ''

White Buffalo A white buffalo or white bison is an American bison possessing white fur, and is considered sacred or spiritually significant in several Native American religions; therefore, such buffalo are often visited for prayer and other religious ritual ...

'' EP (2005); Fireproof Records * ''Valley of Cats'' (2006); Fireproof Records * ''Sun on Sun'' (2007); Fireproof Records; (2008) re-release Thrill Jockey * ''Kale EP'' (2008 with

); Thrill Jockey * ''Maker'' (2009); Thrill Jockey * ''Sea Voids'' (2009); Thrill Jockey * ''Living'' (2010); Thrill Jockey * ''Comecrudos'' EP (2011); Thrill Jockey * ''Echo Ono'' (2012); Thrill Jockey * ''

Innocence Innocence is a lack of guilt, with respect to any kind of crime, or wrongdoing. In a legal context, innocence is to the lack of legal guilt of an individual, with respect to a crime. In other contexts, it is a lack of experience. In relation ...

'' (2014) * ''Revolve 7'' EP (2014); Revolve * ''Dialectic of Ignorance'' (2017); Thrill Jockey

Film

* ''Heat Leisure'' (2013)

References

External links

* {{Authority control Rock music groups from Virginia Musical groups established in 2004 American stoner rock musical groups Musical groups from Virginia American musical trios